The topic of this chat will be the projects on which we are all working. These may be work-related projects or hobby projects -- whatever we all want to chat about that's cool and interesting. I know that one thing I'll be talking about is my Inamorata Prognostication Engine project and my ongoing experiments using tri-colored LEDs to illuminate antique vacuum tubes.

Another project I'm currently working on with EE Times blogger Duane Benson is a universal screw-block proto-shield system for Arduino. We've got the first PCBs back from the board shop. As you can see below, they look wonderful, and they work great.

Universal screw-block proto-shield system for Arduino.

In fact, we're planning on making these bodacious state-of-the-art proto-shields widely available via a Kickstarter project, but that's a blog for another day. You might persuade me to reveal some details in our live online chat.

Speaking of which, this chat -- which is similar to using an instant messaging system but actually employs your web browser -- will commence at 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT/6:00 p.m. GMT/UTC. You can work out your local time from these clues, or you can use this handy-dandy time zone converter.

All you have to do is click here at the appropriate time to join the fun and make your opinions known. (If you aren't already a member of the EE Times community, now would be a perfect time to register.)

An image to ponder
Just a moment. You look a little stressed. Let's check your stress level. Take a look at the following photograph of two dolphins following a boat. The two dolphins are almost identical, but psychologists have discovered that people who are under stress can spot tiny differences between the creatures:

The more differences you can see, the more stressed out you are. How many differences can you spot? And while you are ruminating on that, can you think of an EE Times-related caption that would complement this image? If so, please post it as a comment below.

A quote to ponder
For those who feel that we at EE Times aren't highbrow enough, here's a quote from none other than the Bard himself, who gives the following line to Hamlet:

For tis the sport to have the engineerHoist with his own petard.

Have you heard the term "Hoist with your own petard?" It basically means to be injured by the device you intended to use to injure others. Did you ever wonder where it came from? A petard was a small container of gunpowder used to blow breaches in gates or walls. Engineers originally constructed military engines. What Hamlet is saying is that it's fun to watch the engineer get blown up by his own explosives.

All I can say is that, if this is what Hamlet thought about engineers, he fully deserved his tragic ending.